Critical Habitat in Chicago

NOTE: We do not have jurisdiction over state-listed species. For information on species listed as threatened or endangered by the state of Illinois, please visit the Endangered Species Protection Board and Natural Heritage pages on the Illinois Department of Natural Resources' website.

Ten federally listed endangered, threatened, or candidate species occur, or have historically occurred in Northeastern Illinois. Critical habitat has been designated for the piping plover and Hine's emerald dragonfly in our area.

Urbanization and associated land uses, invasive species, and other disturbances have caused habitat loss and contributed to population declines of many species of plants and animals in northeastern Illinois.

Chicago Field Office Endangered Species Responsibillities

We work with other federal agencies, state and local agencies in the development of projects to minimize and avoid impacts to listed species or designated critical habitat occurring in our area. We are the lead Service office coordinating the recovery activities for the following species:

We assist agencies and the public by alerting them to the potential presence of federally-listed threatened or endangered species. The Chicago Illinois Field Office annually responds to hundreds of requests for information on the presence of threatened or endangered species. We do this by looking for records of species near or on a proposed project site, and by assessing whether suitable habitat may be on a project site. We also assess indirect effects by considering the total scope of a proposed project. For more information on endangered species consultation, please see our Endangered Species Guidance Documents and the Service's Midwest Region's S7 Technical Assistance Website.